The Department of Communication teaches about the nature and effects of communication on the individual, social groups, and society. Faculty emphasize theories about communication processes that involve messages, meanings, and media, and investigate a variety of ways in which communication is practiced in everyday life and the choices about communication that affect individuals and their situation. The department seeks to generate an appreciation for the centrality of communication in people's lives, and aims to help students learn about analytic frameworks which can further their intellectual development as well provide them with guidelines for practical application.  

Faculty research and scholarship in the Department of Communication focuses on three interrelated core areas: social interaction, mediated communication, and organizational communication. Problem-oriented research includes contemporary topics such as health, gender, globalization, identity, and policy. The department also supports the Center for Communication and Health Issues (http://commandhealthissues.rutgers.edu) and the Center for Organizational Development and Leadership (http://www.odl.rutgers.edu).

The faculty's research has been recognized for its impact on scholarship nationally. Thomson Scientific ranked U.S. institutions that published at least 75 papers between 2002 and 2006 in the communication journals that Thomson indexes and found that the Rutgers Department of Communication placed #1 in the country. The details of this study are at http://in-cites.com/research/2007/december_3_2007-2.html.